What is scattering coefficient?

Scattering coefficient is a parameter used in physics and optics to describe how much light is scattered in a particular medium or material. It is usually denoted by the symbol "s" and is measured in units of inverse distance (e.g., cm^-1). The scattering coefficient depends on various factors such as the size, shape, and refractive index of the scatterers in the medium, as well as the wavelength of the incident light. It plays a crucial role in many applications such as medical imaging, remote sensing, atmospheric science, and material characterization, where the amount of light scattered is used to obtain information about the properties and composition of the medium or material.